Thursday, August 16, 2018

In the week ending August 11, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 212,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 213,000 to 214,000. The 4-week moving average was 215,500, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 214,250 to 214,500. emphasis added

The previous week was revised up.

The following graph shows the 4-week moving average of weekly claims since 1971.

Click on graph for larger image.

The dashed line on the graph is the current 4-week average. The four-week average of weekly unemployment claims increased to 215,500.

This was lower than the consensus forecast. The low level of claims suggest few layoffs.